Bang!

The cup smashed to the ground and shattered into pieces.

Lu Ting’s expression was dark and unpleasant when he said through gritted teeth, “Qian Qi, why did you stop me? Given our strength, we could have easily killed that little trash, don’t you agree?”

Qian Qi scrunched his brows. “Xiao Tianren and others were around. Do you think they would just let us kill him?”

Lu Ting snorted. “None of those guys know any martial arts. So what if they all charge out to help that little trash? I can deal with them all alone!”

Qian Qi frowned even more deeply. ‘This guy is so stupid. If we anger Xiao Tianren and the others, who would grow aeth grains for us?’

Qian Qi couldn’t be bothered to explain anymore and he said directly, “Don't forget what I told you last time. In a few days, Lin Xun will go to Sun Mazi’s aeth fields more than twenty miles away from the village to exterminate worms!”

Lu Ting was quiet for a moment but he still felt a little bitter. In the end, he grumbled, “Fine! Then I’ll wait a few more days.”

Qian Qi smiled slightly and said leisurely, “At that time, the treasures from the snow spotted leopard and one-horned lizard will belong to us.”

Lu Ting’s heart blazed and his expression grew fierce and sinister. ‘Little trash, I’ll let you live for a few more days!’

……

In the next few days, apart from helping villagers exterminate worms in their plantations, Lin Xun spent all his time on his cultivation.

Lin Xun made use of every little moment to comprehend the Little Divine Meditation Art, and practiced the Yuan Holding Art, Marching Army Fist Art and Six Word Blade.

Although a huge fraction of the flesh and blood from the snow spotted leopard and one-horned lizard he hunted was distributed to the villagers, the remaining was enough to last Lin Xun for at least ten days.

The two beasts’ flesh and blood had significantly accelerated Lin Xun’s cultivation speed. He even encountered an opportunity to break through to the third layer True Martial Stage, which he decided to delay temporarily.

The presence of the four Aeth Power Vortexes in his four heart acupuncture points made it appear that the amount of aeth power in his body had reduced, but it had only improved its grade by four-fold and increased its purity level!

Lin Xun felt that he should wait until the aeth power within his body was refined to its peak state before making a breakthrough.

His reason for doing so was very simple—he wanted to go further on the cultivation road in the future!

The more solid a cultivator’s foundation was, the smoother the road was in the future. This had been the indisputable truth since ancient times.

However, only very few people in history could achieve this because not everyone possessed the Aeth Power Vortex to refine their aeth power like Lin Xun did.

A cultivator’s foundation had long been decided by their constitution and couldn’t be changed. Therefore, it was impossible to create a stronger foundation.

In the early morning, Lin Xun woke up from meditation. His breathing was deep and long and his body was flowing with energy and aeth power.

“I will breakthrough either tomorrow or the day after tomorrow!”

Lin Xun inhaled deeply like a whale drawing in water. The air flowed into his mouth like a swift current and irrigated every limb and bone in his body before escaping from his nose as a puff of turbid vapor.

This was a sign that he was breaking through the third layer True Martial Stage, the Organ Opening Stage.

The Organ Opening Stage represented the opening of the five organ dwellings, which corresponded to each of the five elements. If a person could smooth their arteries and veins that led to the five organs and draw aeth power there, it would be considered as taking a huge step on their cultivation path.

The ‘exhaling of the old and accepting the new’ prepared the cultivator for ‘Organ Opening’ by removing the impurities from the body and drawing aeth power to the five internal organs. In the process, the cultivator’s entire body, including qi, life force and aeth force would undergo changes.

Lin Xun exited his room and practised the Marching Army Fist Art and the Six Word Blade under the sun. He then quickly rinsed himself and left home.

He had made plans to help Sun Mazi with his fields, which were twenty miles away from Feiyun Village, so he had to set off early in order to get there before noon.

On the way there, villagers enthusiastically greeted Lin Xun, and he also politely nodded back with a smile.

After the time and effort he invested in the past few days, Lin Xun had been accepted into the village and was very respected by everyone.

“Uncle Lin Xun, when will you teach us martial arts?” shouted a little kid.

“Soon, probably in the next few days.”

Lin Xun smiled and patted the child’s head. Then, he left the village with Sun Mazi, who was waiting in the distance.

Sun Mazi’s family field was the only plantation still left to be treated. Once Lin Xun had exterminated the worms in those fields, he would have time to teach the children martial arts.

Sun Mazi was an honest and wooden middle-aged man. The older man didn’t utter a word on the way there.

It took more than an hour for them to arrive at the two thousand odd square meters of plantations near Fiery Smoke Mountain.

Lin Xun couldn’t help but take a closer look at Fiery Smoke Mountain when he arrived.

Standing at hundreds of feet tall, the mountain looked majestic and dangerous. The rocks on the mountain were bare, unlike the green rocks on nearby mountains. Instead, they were a reddish flame-like color and extremely eye-catching.

More than a hundred years ago, a cultivator from the eastern side of the Ziyao Empire spotted a little ore vein when he passed Fiery Smoke Mountain and it turned out to contain an abundant amount of Feiyun Fire Copper.

This was where Feiying Village got its name.

Since then, time had passed and circumstances had changed. When the ore vein was fully excavated and the influential figures left, the remaining group of slaves was left to fend for themselves.

The villagers living in Feiyun Village were all descendants of those abandoned slaves.

Lin Xun had heard Xiao Tianren mention the village’s origin in the past so he couldn’t help but stare a little longer when he saw Fiery Smoke Mountain.

From his understanding, all of the places that contained Feiyun Fire Copper ore veins were all extremely favorable geographical locations and should be further explored!

‘If there’s a chance, I must take a look for myself. If the guys who excavated the mine back then failed to notice something even more valuable, I can take advantage of that.’ An idea flashed across Lin Xun’s mind.

Without further delay, Lin Xun deftly took out the required tools, walked into the depths of the aeth fields and began to draw the Light Drawing Rune.

Sun Mazi waited near the fields.

“The little trash is here! Let’s act now!”

At the foot of Fiery Smoke Mountain, not far from the fields, was Lu Ting hiding behind a boulder, his face contorted in an excited grin.

“Wait a little longer. His aeth power will be exhausted after drawing runes and that’s the best time to kill him.”

Qian Qi wore a calm and solemn expression. He was an extremely cautious person.

“Given our strengths, do you think we can’t deal with a piece of trash at the second layer True Martial Stage?” asked Lu Ting, sounding a little annoyed.

“It’s best to be cautious.”

Qian Qi was not moved at all.

Helpless, Lu Ting glowered with anger. He couldn’t understand why Qian Qi, a third layer True Martial Stage cultivator, would think so highly of Lin Xun.

Soon, a buzz rang from the fields and a beam of golden light shot into the sky.

It was the Light Drawing Rune displaying its effect. Qian Qi couldn't help but sigh at the sight. “Given the kid's ability, if he didn’t go against us, he could have been useful to Big Brother Lian Rufeng. What a pity…”

“Don’t cry crocodile tears!” Lu Ting spat disdainfully.

Qian Qi smiled without retorting. He got up and strode towards the fields. “Let's go, it's harvest time.”

“At last!”

Lu Ting had been waiting impatiently. He sprang up and charged over like a bloodthirsty bull with a giant shining hammer in his hand.

……

The Light Drawing Rune displayed its magical effect and exterminated the worms within seconds.

Lin Xun didn’t even need to look to know what would be the result. He turned around and walked out of the field, but he came to realize that Sun Mazi was gone.

Huh?

Lin Xun’s eyes darted around the surroundings, and while puzzlement filled his heart, he saw two figures speeding towards him from a distance.

One was slim and fierce-looking and held a spear in his hand. The other was tall and burly, and wore a sinister expression while wielding a giant hammer.

They were Qian Qi and Lu Ting!

They had clearly come with malicious intentions. However, Lin Xun remained calm and collected. He had already predicted that Lu Ting and Qian Qi would come to give him trouble. He just didn't expect it to be that soon.

Sun Mazi's sudden disappearance made Lin Xun realize that he had colluded with Lu Ting and Qian Qi.

No one was nearby and he was far from Feiyun Village, making it impossible to seek help. It was indeed a good place to kill.

Lin Xun knew Qian Qi was the brains behind this operation because Lu Ting was, well, a stupid boar, aggressive and hot-headed. He would never be able to plan something so meticulously.

Lin Xun simply stood there quietly as he watched Lu Ting and Qian Qi approach. His expression was calm and a hint of a smile played on his lips.

“You two finally came.” Lin Xun suddenly spoke.

Both Lu Ting and Qian Qi were taken aback. They thought the sudden change of situation would make Lin Xun panic and flee, but they didn't expect him to stand there calmly, as if he was waiting for them to arrive.

“Stop pretending, let’s see who will save you now!” Lu Ting roared. Lin Xun’s calm demeanor made him even more annoyed.

Qian Qi was also a little surprised by Lin Xun's composure, but his eyes were still cold and razor-sharp. ‘No matter what tricks he is playing, he will die today!’

“The place you picked isn’t bad. I had worried over the best place to eliminate you two without any witnesses. Unexpectedly, you dug your own graves. You made it a lot easier for me.”

Lin Xun drew the short azure blade strapped at his waist with a cheery smile on his face and his bearing abruptly changed at that very moment.